True to Your Heart
by J-Nine
Summary: He had to find his heart. She had to find herself. On an adventure of epic proportions, will they be able to find what they were looking for? A Mulan parody!
1. Shattered

True to Your Heart  
  
Ch. 1: shattered!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha! putting up a strong front but can't help the few tears that fall  
  
The year was 511 and the entire world was centered on one most beautiful and magical place. The middle kingdom.   
  
The middle kingdom was the very center of the United kingdoms (no not the UK this is my own made up place). It was where all trading between countries took place. It was also where the most powerful of all magic resided. The Shikon no Tama.   
  
The Shikon no Tama, the jewel of four souls, was the single thing that protected all of the United kingdoms. It supplied their power and protected them from the evil that wished to overthrow them.   
  
But over the course of so many centuries the jewel was losing its power and luster. Without the one soul that was needed to keep the jewel pure it would eventually fade away leaving their kingdoms unprotected. Of course this didn't go unnoticed by the emperor.   
  
He was a young but very wise man who had reigned over the middle kingdom and its surrounding one's as well, since the days of his youth. He ruled with an iron fist and an iron will. Some would say he was the strictest emperor their country had, had yet. But under that entire rough exterior was the most kind and understanding man.   
  
The emperor was in his throne room contemplating his predicament with the jewel when he heard some racket coming from outside the doors. He looked up just in time to see the doors thrown open by the general of his army who came charging into the room along with two young men at his sides and all the guards running along behind them trying to stop them. This of course was a futile attempt for you see the general was a youkai. Not just any youkai either he was the most powerful youkai of all the kingdoms. He was Sugimi of the Takashi clan. And the two young men were his sons, Sesshoumaru who was the lieutenant and Inuyasha who was the captain. Their clan was the most powerful and prestigious of the youkai clans which was the reason why the emperor made them head of his army.  
  
The general made his way up to the emperor's throne with his two sons on his heels and quickly bowed in respect. He seemed to be very rushed. "Please excuse my intrusion your majesty but I have some really urgent news." He said looking up to the emperor who now had a worried look on his face.   
  
"What happened?" he asked getting out of his throne.   
  
Sesshoumaru continued with their explanation. "If I may continue your majesty, the sacred jewel's power has almost diminished, meaning so has the shield that has protected the united kingdoms for all these centuries, leaving many gaps for those with evil intensions to come through." He said this with so little expression he seemed to not care at all.   
  
The general continued. "Naraku and his army have broken through the northern section of the shield"   
  
The emperor took this in stride and thought up a plan. "Alright" turning to his head councilman he said, "Deliver constription (I did not spell that right) notices throughout all the kingdoms! Rally up as many new recruits as possible." Turning back to the three men "I want the one to stay behind and train the new recruits to be....you." He finished off pointing at none other than Inuyasha.   
  
Inuyasha seemed a bit surprised by this not to mention his father. "But your majesty I need both my sons to assist me while I battle Naraku and his troops and I do not think we need to train anymore men to fight them off." The general argued. "That may be true general Taisho but I will not take any chances. A single grain of rice can tip a scale; one man may be the difference between victory and defeat."   
  
The general sighed and turned to his son. "Alright inuyasha, you will stay behind and train the new troops." Inuyasha was angered by this. "But why do I have to be the one to stay behind?!" he directed his question at the emperor.   
  
The emperor walked down the steps to his throne and got right up in front of him. The general was a bit worried that the emperor would have his son killed for insubordination. "Because I believe you will be the most qualified for this job." Inuyasha continued to argue. "But why not Sesshoumaru? He's even more qualified than I!" the emperor didn't seem fazed at all by inuyasha's yelling "This is precisely the reason he will go with your father. We will only hold back those we can afford to." Before inuyasha could retaliate the sound of the doors being thrown open again interrupted them.   
  
A guard came running in with a look of distress on face. He quickly bowed to the emperor then the general and sons before speaking. "Your majesty huff huff the shield...the shield is... is completelyhuff huff shattered!" this completely surprised the four men in the room. "What do you mean completely shattered?!" the emperor's voice boomed. The guard was shaking with fear as he got down on his knees. "It is just as I say your highness! It's completely gone!"   
  
The emperor gave a frustrated sigh and turned back to the general. "Get to work on getting those troops prepared to protect my people. And captain Inuyasha," He turned to the youngest of the sons. "You WILL stay behind and prepare the new recruits. That's an order!" he turned around and went back to his throne. Inuyasha was about to argue back but a quick glare from his father quickly shut him up. He gave a rushed bow to hide the sour look on his face before turning around and briskly walking out the huge double doors, slamming them behind him.   
  
His father turned back to the emperor, bowed and followed his son's lead out the doors. But Sesshoumaru stayed behind to talk a little more to the emperor. "Your majesty if you don't mind me asking, what are you going to do about the jewel?" the emperor sighed and looked at the lieutenant with a contemplating look on his face. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this." He closed his eyes and looked rather perturbed. Sesshoumaru raised one of his delicate eyebrows at this. "Come to what your highness?" suddenly the emperor turned to the stone statue of a fox that was next to his throne. "Shippo! Wake up!"   
  
The statue suddenly became a real fox that then poofed with a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared Sesshoumaru saw a little boy with a reddish brown hair and a puffy beige tail.   
  
"Sesshoumaru this is Shippo." The emperor introduced the little fox child but sounded rather annoyed.   
  
Shippo bowed to the man and then turned to the emperor with an annoyed look of his own. "So your royal pain-ness what meager little chore do you want me to do today?" he crossed his little arms and stood there sort of pouting.   
  
The emperor sighed and rubbed his face. "Shippou I want you to go out with the shikon jewel and look for the one that was prophesized to return its power. Does that sound like a meager little chore to you?" he asked turning to the fox with a half eyed/annoyed look. Shippo put a look of deep thought on his face just to annoy him more. "Alright! But how will I know who it is?"   
  
Once again the emperor sighed again and spoke through his teeth. "The prophesy! You complete and utter moron!" Shippo's face showed recognition at that. "Oh right! The prophesy! It said that the one to return the jewels power would be pure of heart and self-sacrificing. But still how am I supposed to find them out of all the people in then entire kingdoms." He whined to the already severely ticked king.   
  
The emperor turned to the little table that always stood next to his throne and picked up the little box that was on it. He opened he little box and picked something up out of it. It was a little black stone with some ancient Chinese calligraphy on it in white paint. He put it around shippo's neck, who just looked at it in confusion. "What the heck is this thing?" he inspected, sniffing and everything. (Doesn't that sound like something inu would do?) "That is what will show you who the 'one' is." Shippo just looked more confused. "How's it gonna do that?" the emperor sighed again rubbing his temples. "It just will now stop dawdling and get searching!" he shouted pointing toward the exit. Shippo "eeped" and bolted out the doors before anyone could blink.  
  
Sesshoumaru watched all this with a slightly amused expression. The emperor turned back to him and gave another exasperated sigh. "THAT, Sesshoumaru, is what I didn't want it to come to." Sesshoumaru gave a slight chuckle, bowed and left through the doors the fox recently exited through.  
  
The emperor sat there in his throne room contemplating his actions. 'Maybe I should've sent someone else' sigh  
  
AN: hi! Thanks for reading the first chapter of my second fan fiction. Now if you're thinking that I don't like Shippo your wrong I love that little guy I just wanted to make it seem like the emperor and him didn't get along very well. Well if you liked this please tell me and I will update but if you don't then well.......I won't do anything! 


	2. Authors Note

**AN AN AN! I had realized when I re-read this particular story that I had accidentally InuTaisho two different names. I think at the time I hadn't decided on one yet and did that by accident. . But I have decided that he is just going to be called InuTaisho or Taisho. Sorry for that mishap, and I will try to continue this story soon. **

** - Crimsonnekoladyinu**


	3. Reflection

True to Your Heart

Disclaimer: Don't own it.

**AN: Just for reference, when the words are in italics, it means the characters are speaking in a different language.**

Ch. 2: Reflection (XD)

The sky was showing early signs of sunrise as beautiful hues of pink and orange started appearing in the great dark expanse. At this time, the United Kingdoms were at complete peace, despite the fact that their only means of protection (besides the king's army) had been broken just the day before. As of yet, the kings messengers had yet to deliver the notices that their emperor had ordered them to. And so, no citizens knew about the breach, and thus, were still at peace, sleeping in their warm beds.

Except for one place. Loud crashing sounds resounded through a home, complimented by angry voices yelling at each other in incoherent barks and growls. It was the language of the canine demons.

"_I still don't understand why it has to be me who has to stay behind! Any other of your officers are just as capable, and more qualified according to 'His Majesty's' standards!"_ Inuyasha's voice boomed, shaking the foundation of the fairly large stone house seated just outside the Emperor's castle. He put emphasis on the Emperor's name, making it sound like in insult more than anything else.

Taisho looked at him with a frustrated glare, rubbing his temple as he sat in his overly stuffed chair in his meeting room. Inuyasha had stalked around every inch of the large space, and picked up and thrown almost every piece of valuable glass or pottery. Obviously, the younger officer had a bit of a temper problem.

"_The Emperor himself chose you Inuyasha, why can you not look at it as an honor instead of an insult?"_ By now Taisho had given up on trying to yell some sense into the boy, favoring to close his eyes and massage his headache away.

But his words fell on deaf ears, for Inuyasha had taken to pacing around the room faster, looking at the ground with a furious stare and growling things that even his father could not understand. His thoughts though, were a bit more organized.

'Why can't I fight too? Why do _I_ have to be the one to stay back and train a bunch of no good novices!' It just made absolutely no sense to him. He was one of the best fighters in the entire Imperial army, third only to Sesshoumaru, who was only second to their father. And yet _he_ was worth keeping back? Really! He couldn't believe the audacity that that old man of a ruler who called himself an Emperor had!

Sesshoumaru chose that time to enter the room, his eyes closed serenly as he closed the door silently behind him. He had just returned from speaking with the Emperor, and checking on the guard posts around the village. Everything at the moment was fine, as far as he could tell.

When he opened his eyes, he first looked at the fuming Inuyasha, and then at his father. The older inu youkai looked at him with a face that said 'I can't get him to shutup'. Sesshoumaru shook his head, closed his eyes and approached his brother.

Inuyasha looked up when a pair of black armored feet appeared in his line of sight. He growled at Sesshoumaru, who looked at him with an air of authority. _"What do you want?" _he growled at his elder brother.

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed dangerously and he stalked forward further, forcing his brother backwards until the back of his knees met a chair that sat in front of his father desk.

"_Sit." _Sesshoumaru growled back, in a calm voice that seemed more menacing then any of Inuyasha's barks.

Inuyasha glared at the Leautenant something fierce, but did as he was told and plopped down in his chair with a low throaty growl. Strangely, the only one Inuyasha would really take orders from, was his older brother. Even his father had to tell his hanyou son to do something in a softer tone, despite being general of the entire Imperial army. The brothers had that weird bond, most of the time of hate and contempt. But sometimes, a few flickers of respect could be seen glowing in the eyes of the brothers, held only for each other.

Of course, Inuyasha respected his father too; he just didn't take orders from him. And at times such as these, he was thankful he had an elder son with such a self controlled attitude. If anyone could talk some sense into the younger boy, it would be him.

Sesshoumaru turned to stand next to their father while Inuyasha looked at him with a glare that could kill. The elder officer's fur shoulder ornament billowed behind him in an invisible wind.

"_So, he isn't accepting his responsibility I take it?" _Sesshoumaru asked their father in a tone loud enough for Inuyasha to hear as well. The older man nodded, closing his eyes to rest his mind. He waved his hand in an 'I'll let you take it from here' manner.

Sesshoumaru turned to his younger brother with an even gaze, his hands clasped behind him. Inuyasha was looking to the side, his lips pursed in a frown and eyebrows drawn together. The elder walked back around the desk, never taking his eyes off his hanyou brother.

"_You're going to accept this."_ Sesshoumaru said in canine youkai tongue. His brother only looked at him through the side of his eye with his teeth bared.

"_Why does everyone keep telling me that? Why should I accept this?"_ Inuyasha turned in his seat to glower at Sesshoumaru, gripping the arm rests of his chair in a vice grip. His ears stood stalk still upon his white haired head, waiting for Sesshoumaru's answer.

"_Because you will." _Sesshoumaru answered simply, walking around Inuyasha toward the doors. _"Come."_ He commanded softly as he opened a door and walked out into the hallway. Inuyasha blinked in surprise. It didn't last long though, as it was replaced by mildly subdued anger. He looked back at his father, who still had his eyes closed, feigning slumber.

"_Dammit."_ Inuyasha growled as he stood up and followed after his brother, stomping his feet the entire way.

Taisho opened one eye when the door slammed shut, watching as yet another vase, this one made of Chinese porcelain, fell from a shelf and shattered on the floor. He sighed tiredly and let his eye fall closed again.

"Izayoi my darling, if only you were here."

Inuyasha followed Sesshoumaru silently, walking through the halls of their large home. He didn't know what his brother had in mind, but he followed nonetheless. Sesshoumaru obviously had a desired destination, he would just have to wait and see where that was.

They turned a final corner and Inuyasha found himself stepping out the ever open doors of that lead to the walk in garden right outside. Sheer white curtains gently billowed in the early morning breeze, creating a ghostly illusion that filtered through the two brothers minds.

Sesshoumaru took up the lead again and walked out onto the flagstone pathway that meandered through out the shrubbery and exotic flowers. Inuyasha blinked owlishly for a minute before following.

Mother's garden? Why did Sesshoumaru want to go there?

Inuyasha's ears were bombarded with the noises of early morning. Birds twittering, squirrels chipping and even the dew settling on their blades of grass. From inside the walls of the garden, they all seemed far away, like they were completely secluded from the world.

Inuyasha stopped suddenly, in front of a particular flower. It didn't seem special in any way, not displaying any of the beautiful variations of colors that were upon the other shrubs in the garden. It was a simple white lily, plain and dull apart from the spark of yellow barely noticeable in the middle. It had to be the most boring flower in the entire sanctuary.

And yet, it was the most special.

Inuyasha stooped down next to the flower, the anger that was coursing through his veins just minutes before momentarily forgotten. His eyes obtained a shimmering far off quality to them as he stared at the lily, gently tracing the edges of its petals with one of his claws.

"That was mother's favorite wasn't it?" Sesshoumaru spoke up from behind, reverting to using the human language he had grown accustomed to.

Inuyasha had completely forgotten about his brother's presence, and thus was slightly startled when the elder inu youkai spoke up from directly behind him. His claw slipped, slicing one of the lily's petals slightly. Inuyasha's eyes narrowed before he stood up, his bangs sweeping over his face to hide it.

He continued walking into the garden, not bothering to answer Sesshoumaru's question. Soon he found himself standing in front of a fair sized pond, decorated with water lilies and lotus blossoms. A trickling waterfall was hidden behind some tropical water palms, creating a mysterious air that settled comfortably upon the hanyou's head. The water was still dark in the shadows of the looming wall, not letting any of the morning sunlight shine upon the dark depths of the small pool.

Inuyasha looked down into it, unable to find any hint of his reflection in it. Sesshoumaru stepped up behind him, and for some reason, Inuyasha found he was able to see Sesshoumaru's reflection in the water, though just a little. But yet, it caused a frown to crease his forehead further. He shoved the thoughts away as he looked to the side, pulling his gaze away from the pond. Sesshoumaru watched his little brothers movements for another minute then walked around him to sit cross legged at the edge of the pool. Inuyasha looked back at him out of the corner of his eye, and through some compulsion, sat down next to the elder youkai, in a much less graceful way.

Sesshoumaru had his eyes closed and his back was perfectly straight as he sat there. Inuyasha watched him from where he sat, hunched over with his arms stuffed in his slightly baggy sleeves.

"Do you remember what mother said Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru said so suddenly he made the hanyou jump slightly yet again.

Inuyasha breathed in silently to calm himself down before replying. "What are you talking about?" he looked away from his brother's visage, leering at the lush dark green bushes across from them instead.

Sesshoumaru's eyes opened slightly, looking down at the still dark waters of the pond. "What she had said about that flower. Why it had been her favorite." He said calmly.

Inuyasha's eyebrows knitted in concentration as he tried to remember what his mother might have said to them. He could remember her telling him it was her favorite, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember _why_ it had been. A memory of his mother flashed up in his mind, her lips upturned in the gentlest smile. They moved, and yet he could not hear anything that came from them.

"No, I can't remember." Inuyasha finally replied.

Sesshoumaru took this in calmly, crossing his arms as well, tucking them into his sleeves. He turned his head slightly, looking at his younger brother. "Although it held the least color, and was the most boring, and seemed to have nothing special about it at all, it still seemed more beautiful to her than all the others combined. Do you know why that was?"

Once again, Inuyasha answered with a negative, shaking his head slowly from side to side. Silently he wondered why Sesshoumaru was bringing this up, now of all times, but did not dare to interrupt him.

Sesshoumaru continued. "She said that it told a story. Even though the flower had not much beauty to it, being only a plain white, in its center it still had that dash of yellow." His face turned heavenward, watching as the sky became ever brighter, chasing the darkness of night away to the other end of the world. "It reminded her that there was something special in everyone, in everything." His gaze slowly turned back to his brother, whose shoulders had sagged even further, his gaze falling to his lap. "A strength that sometimes lied so deep, so buried beneath other things, they appeared to be too ordinary to really be worth while…"

Inuyasha looked up towards the waters of the pond, the light of morning finally started to reflect off its surface to show the brilliant blue of the sky. And yet still, he could somehow not see his reflection. It probably had something to do with the fact that he was seated too far back.

But that did not bother him. It was what Sesshoumaru had said, that last part didn't seem to fit with what he had been talking about before. He lifted his head and straightened his shoulders to question his brother only to find he no longer sat beside him. He turned around and saw the retreating form of his brother, back still perfectly straight.

"True strength can only be found if you have it Inuyasha. And even then, you must search hard to find where it lies."

Inuyasha barely caught his words as he disappeared back within the confines of the house. His eyebrows drew together and his mouth turned down in an obvious frown. What was _that_ supposed to mean? Was he implying that he was weak?

"Keh!" Inuyasha turned around with a grunt and stuffed his hands back into his sleeves, glaring at the water as though it would evaporate it he tried hard enough. Nothing happened of course, and after another seven minutes of pure brooding, Inuyasha found himself growing weary and slid down to lay beside the waters of the pond. The trickling of the waterfall started to lull him to sleep, somehow reminding him of his mother's sweet lullabies from when he was a child.

And suddenly, Sesshoumaru's words from back in the house came flying back at him. _"You're going to accept this. Because you will." _The drowsiness that had slowly started fogging Inuyasha's mind vanished instantly and he returned to brooding. He laid there on his back, staring up at the sky with a frown.

Then he went and called him weak! Sometimes he just wanted to take out his tetsusaiga and slash his brother to pieces.

Then again, perhaps he felt that way the majority of the time.

Oh well, it didn't matter anyway. Inuyasha turned on his side, resting his head on his arm as he looked at the pond water once again. For some reason, he just could not get the darned demon sword to work for him. His father had demonstrated it many times for him before, transforming the blade and using it with great ease. He wouldn't tell his son the secret to it either, claiming that it was something he had to find on his own. Whatever the heck that meant.

"True strength can only be found if you have it."

Sesshoumaru's words popped into his head again and Inuyasha shook it violently, angry that his brother's voice kept reverberating inside his skull. It was beginning to grate on his nerves. He would pay absolutely no mind to what his brother had said, it meant absolutely nothing. All he had been saying was that Inuyasha was weak, which was totally untrue.

"I'm not weak." Inuyasha muttered to himself, glaring daggers at the small fish and tadpoles in the pond. They quickly swam away, as if sensing the hanyou's irritation.

The movement caught Inuyasha's attention, and he leaned forward to look into the water for the third time that day, looking for his mirror image.

The frantic flips of the aquatic animal's fins caused the water to ripple, making it impossible for the hanyou captain to see his reflection.

**AN: Weee! I finally got around to writing another chapter for this story! After watching Mulan again, I felt momentary inspiration for this story. I know what you're thinking by the way, why in the world is Sesshoumaru speaking that way? No way would he say something that mushy! WELL TOO BAD! I wanted him to be the one to say that to Inuyasha so he did! Nyah! Haha, well, I hope you liked it, please review and tell me what you think. I'll be redoing the first chapter soon. I re-read it a day or two ago, and really don't like how I had done it. So be expecting that! XD**


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